Summary of July Export-Import Trends by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
Trade Balance: Surplus of $6.61 billion
On July 31, a pile of containers can be seen at Pyeongtaek Port, Gyeonggi Province, following the conclusion of the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations. U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the 30th (local time) that the U.S. has signed a trade agreement to lower the reciprocal tariff rate applied to Korea from 25% to 15%.
Despite the uncertainties of U.S. tariff risks persisting in July, exports reached a record high for the month. The trade balance also recorded a surplus for the sixth consecutive month, marking the largest surplus for July since 2018.
According to the ‘July Export-Import Trends’ announced by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on the 1st, exports increased by 5.9% from a year earlier to $60.82 billion (84.6614 trillion won). Exports also hit a historic high for June last month, and this month, they reached a record for July, maintaining positive growth for two consecutive months.
Last month’s imports increased by 0.7% to $54.21 billion (75.4603 trillion won). Consequently, South Korea’s trade balance stood at a surplus of $6.61 billion (9.2011 trillion won). The trade surplus in July was the largest since 2018, continuing a six-month streak of trade surpluses.